History YMMV / Shenmue

** The 2018 CompilationRerelease. After fans campaigned for years for Sega to re-release the game for modern consoles, they're either happy that Sega listened and can now relive the series without having to pull out their Dreamcasts, or upset that they released an imperfect port of two groundbreaking titles that needed more development time.

** The UsefulNotes/ConsoleWars are still alive and well in the minds of many ''Shenmue'' gamers. Some prefer the games to be played on the system it was designed for, the UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast, even leading to some contempt for the series appearing on the [=Xbox=] and [=PS4=][[note]]although in the case of the former, due to ''Shenmue II'''s US Dreamcast cancellation[[/note]], while others are glad to play them regardless of what console it's on. Many fans on the ''Shenmue III'' Kickstarter have even asked for a Dreamcast version of the game with the same engine as the previous two games, although Suzuki says this is not happening.

** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQa3yGXzGls Sailors.]] So much that it became an AscendedMeme in ''[[VideoGame/SegaSuperstars Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing]]'' (Mission 22, a timed gate mission as Ryo in the ''VideoGame/SuperMonkeyBall'' Treetops track, outright tells you that you'll find no sailors, but rather lots of monkeys.[[note]]Unless you're playing on the UsefulNotes/{{Wii}}, in which case the baby monkeys spectating the track are gone because of the console's inferior processors.[[/note]])

** "Anata no KONBENI TOMATO MA-TO!" (literally, "Your convenient Tomato Mart"). This often misheard line is what the singers are actually saying in the song that plays whenever you visit the Tomato Convenience Store.

* BaseBreakingCharacter: Our protagonist Ryo himself. He's well-liked by a good portion of the fandom because he's a skilled martial artist who hasn't let ''anything'' stop him in his quest to avenge his father's death and isn't above partaking in fun activities, but a good portion of players think there's something deeply wrong with him being so consumed by his quest that he turns down or fails to recognize the affections of beautiful women who pretty much throw themselves at him. While likely a case of ValuesDissonance, it doesn't help that the reason why Ryo's not eager to be romantically involved with women isn't touched upon in the games themselves and [[AllThereInTheManual only mentioned in guides]], and he comes off as more [[CluelessChickMagnet dense]] than [[CelibateHero reserved]]. And if that reason still comes off a bit shallow, some people just think he's a cold, antisocial {{Jerkass}}. And then there's the whole "[[MemeticMutation Sailors]]" thing, but fans can only get limited mileage out of the HoYay too, considering Ryo spends about 1/3 of the sequel in the company of a shirtless, pretty boy gang leader (even [[ChainedHeat handcuffed to him]] for a stretch), but he's annoyed and exasperated by it the entire time.

* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: Perhaps ''the'' single greatest example in modern gaming. On release, ''Shenmue'' was nothing more than utterly groundbreaking, being one of the greatest looking and most detailed games ever made. Just about everything it does as a major selling point has, unfortunately, been done better by someone else- the groundbreaking graphical quality and motion capture elements that gave the game an incredible look are now the norm in video games, while the open world elements and social interactions with different characters are now to be expected in open world games. In addition, ''Shenmue'' has a number of crucial flaws that other open world games have solved. A lack of a minimap or any kind of objective markers makes exploration a chore, and the stilted voice acting and deathly slow pacing have been sidelined by more modern games. The result is that despite it being praised as one of the best games ever made, it's hard to replay the original and understand why, unless you realize that it invented an ''entire genre of video games''. ''Shenmue II'' has actually held up much better than the original, mostly due to the numerous refinements it makes in its gameplay causing it to play much closer to modern day standards for games.

** With the ''VideoGame/{{Yakuza}}'' series, which shares many gameplay elements and was much more successful for Sega, especially in Japan, which is upsetting for those who believe ''Shenmue'' deserved it more. The two are often compared to each other, leading to arguments on which series is better. Of course, there are fans who love both series and appreciate them for different reasons.

** Right before Yuanda Zhu is taken away by Yuan, Wong is approached by several rats in the vents and unleashes them on the Yellow Head's resident NeatFreak. The look on Yuan's face as he gets covered in rats is absolutely priceless.

* HilariousInHindsight: In the first game, Tom, the vendor at the hot dog stand, with his appearance, name, voice, and mannerisms, is ''very'' similar to [[Film/TheRoom Tommy Wiseau]].

** "Years ago... I was Chinese." [[note]]This line said by Itoi became memetic after the HD release of the two first Shenmue who became a source of comedy thanks to ''LetsPlay/{{Videogamedunkey}}'' due to the BlindIdiotTranslation when he meant he was formely a Chinese citizen.[[/note]]

* AuthorsSavingThrow: The anime has been praised by fans for bringing out Ryo's more human side, such as making him more expressive and willing to avoid fights whenever the situation doesn't require it, while maintaining his more recognizable traits such as his obsession with revenge, confidence in his martial arts, and being completely ObliviousToLove. This makes him more likable as a third-person protagonist as opposed to a character that players had to insert themselves into and had a hard time relating with.

* SugarWiki/DevelopmentHeaven: Each and every character has their own personal schedule and voice acting, along with a lot of information about them you can't even find without the player's guide. There are tons of buildings you can enter that have no point in the game world other than to be entered and looked at (compare to ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto'', where if a building can be entered it has to have a point). There's a mode which has completely authentic weather for the year. No wonder it was the most expensive video game of its time.

* PolishedPort: While not perfect, the 2018 CompilationRerelease implements the save system that was introduced in the sequel, adjusts the controls so that both analog sticks can be used to move and look around, and the information screen has been completely overhauled so you can look at all of the items, toys and moves you've unlocked, and in the case of the latter two, the ones you haven't. Both the Japanese and English dubs are available, and along with the various graphical settings, these can be switched on the fly without having to quit the game. And for the first time for American audiences, you can use your save for the first game to use in the second.

** The UsefulNotes/ConsoleWars are still alive and well in the minds of many ''Shenmue'' gamers. Some prefer the games to be played on the system it was designed for, the UsefulNotes/SegaDreamcast, even leading to some contempt for the series appearing on the [=XBox=] and [=PS4=][[note]]although in the case of the former, due to ''Shenmue II'''s US Dreamcast cancellation[[/note]], while others are glad to play them regardless of what console it's on. Many fans on the ''Shenmue III'' Kickstarter have even asked for a Dreamcast version of the game with the same engine as the previous two games, although Suzuki says this is not happening.

* LauncherOfAThousandShips: [[CelibateHero Ryo]]. More so in the second game thanks to the introduction of a much larger female cast, many fans have set him up with almost all of them. While some claim [[ChildhoodFriends Nozomi]] is Ryo's true girl, some would prefer him to be paired with the [[BikerBabe hot and feisty Joy]], think that [[CuteBruiser Izumi]] is a better match for him, or that Shenhua really is the [[GirlOfMyDreams girl of his dreams]]. Some also see [[PrecociousCrush Fangmei]] as too cute to refuse, and even think he and [[LadyOfWar Xiuying]] would make a great couple. Naturally, there are those who would pair Ryo with [[HoYay Guizhang]] or [[http://shenmuedojo.net/images/modimages/ryorenpic1.jpg Ren]]. On the more comical side, some have partnered him with his [[CargoShip forklift]], [[RunningGag sailors]], and even [[https://youtu.be/PEEYeY6CS-4?t=1m29s Lan Di]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lP0MoWhKwMY the great Chai]].

!! The Animation

* AuthorsSavingThrow: The anime has been praised by fans for bringing out Ryo's more human side, such as making him more expressive and willing to avoid fights whenever the situation doesn't require it, while maintaining his more recognizable traits such as his obsession with revenge, confidence in his martial arts, and being completely ObliviousToLove.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Related to much of what is written below in BaseBreakingCharacter, many theories have been made over the years to explain Ryo's behavior, including secretly or unknowingly being in the closet, obsessive compulsive disorder, autism, and serious social anxiety.